Another wonderful small town is Kelley’s Island, OH. It’s the best of the Lake Erie islands, imo. Obviously, it’s got a ton of tourists at any given time, to a very small population of only about 250 full time residents. Despite that, off the main street, it’s a super chill place that (obviously) has great access to water. There’s a dope area on the Eastern edge of the island, beyond the single-strip airport, with an amazing outdoor/indoor art gallery/studio. There’s interesting geography - old quarries abandoned 100 years ago with strange microclimates, huge glacial grooves, caves. It is at substantial ecological risk from overtourism, so if you do go, please be chill, don’t bring your car (bikes are an easier way to get around anyhow), and if you litter I’ll hunt you down and kill you.